Elizabeth missed her grandfather’s funeral because of a broken seat belt. Well, that’s not entirely true. United Airlines claimed that there was a broken seat belt on the plane she was supposed to take from Chicago to Savannah, then kept pushing back and ultimately canceled the flight. By the time they finally canceled the flight, there were no more flights to Savannah for days. A broken co-pilot seat belt and a massive customer service failure is what kept Elizabeth and other passengers in Chicago. [More]
refunds
Demanding A Refund From Toys ‘R’ Us Leads To Infighting, Tears
By 7.23.12
Cami ordered some car seats online for in-store pickup at a local Toys ‘R’ Us store. When the order came, the seats were the wrong model. No problem: she just refused the order, which would put the seats back in store inventory and trigger a refund to the card used for the purchase. Right? Er, no. Ordering from the online presence of your favorite local retailer and picking up in the store isn’t as seamless as it might appear. You’re really dealing with two separate stores, and two separate retail operations. In Cami’s case, this meant that two different departments of the same company were effectively arguing over who owed her a refund. [More]
Stuck Without Refund, Should I Listen To Walmart Or PayPal?
By 6.27.12
J. is stuck between two commercial titans and regular Worst Company in America contenders: Walmart and PayPal. After he returned a defective tablet for a refund, Walmart held on to the money. J. filed a PayPal dispute, and has been told to drop the dispute in order to get a refund from Walmart. PayPal says not to drop the dispute. Who should J. trust? [More]
It's Not LivingSocial's Problem That Gun Range Is All Booked Up
By 6.5.12
On group deal site LivingSocial, Bob bought passes for a fun night at a nearby gun range. The problem is that he hasn’t been able to actually use them. Not because he hasn’t had time, but because after two visits to the range, they haven’t been able to let him in because the place is full or booked for leagues. Funny, the deal didn’t say anything about certain days being off limits. He tried to get a refund for these vouchers, but LivingSocial isn’t interested. Guess he’s stuck calling ahead to see if they might deign to let him in. [More]
The Case Of The Newegg Investigation, The Missing Refund, And The Vanishing Unlocked Phone
By 5.23.12
Brian was really excited to open up and play with his new toy, an unlocked phone that he ordered on sale from Newegg. But the box arrived on his doorstep and…. no phone. The bluetooth headset that he had ordered was there, but not the phone. He grew impatient with Newegg’s investigation when the missing phone wasn’t his fault, and managed to get their customer service to do the right thing and get the phone into his hand, at the sale price. Only neither of their promised refunds–of the original purchase price, and of the difference between the original price and what Brian paid for the replacement phone–have come through. [More]
Lenovo Has My Defective Computer, Isn't Returning My Calls
By 5.17.12
Bethany’s Lenovo laptop computer is pretty nice. At least, it is when it’s around. It keeps taking extended vacations at Lenovo’s repair depot, to the point that she had to buy another computer in order to get through finals and computerless life in general. After they held on to her machine for three weeks, she finally asked for a refund instead of getting the evidently defective computer back. That’s when they stopped returning her calls. [More]
I Would Rather Gnaw My Arm Off Than Continue Dealing With Comcast
By 4.17.12
M. has had it with Comcast. In fact, she’s not even a customer of theirs anymore. But the good people of Kabletown owe her a $143 refund after she canceled service in February, and she can’t get her money out of their clutches. Even the customer service heroes of the Twitter team promise her that a check is on its way…but it never shows. At this point, it isn’t even about the money anymore. [More]
Target Would Rather You Return A Purchase And Buy It At A Lower Price Than Just Give You A Price Adjustment
By 3.5.12
Have you ever bought something at a store only to find out a week or two later that the store had reduced the price? Some retailers will be nice enough to give you a refund for that price difference if you show them the receipt. But if you want to take advantage of this policy at Target, you may need to return your original purchase and buy a completely new item. [More]
How Long Should You Expect To Wait For Refunds From Online Retailers?
By 12.28.11
We are now three days into the official Holiday Returns & Exchanges Season, and while those shoppers who paid a little more — and put on pants — to go shopping at bricks-and-mortar stores, it’s usually just a matter of waiting in line to get your refund. But for gift-givers who did their buying online this year, that wait for a refund could be anywhere from a few days to several weeks. [More]
3 Ways To Recoup Money Wasted On Trips Gone Bad
By 12.12.11
When you’re on vacation, high expectations crushed by mishaps can transform you into a steaming ball of rage. It’s easy to lash out at those you feel who have done you wrong, but it’s smarter to take a step back and use tact and strategy to get problems fixed. [More]
Best Buy Pricematching COD:MW3 At $51.99
By 11.11.11
Anyone who rushed out and bought the new Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 for $59.99 at Best Buy… should rush back in and ask for $8 back. That’s because BestBuy.com dropped the price to $51.99 and Best Buy brick and mortars are supposed to pricematch the online site. [More]
JetBlue Giving Refunds To Customers Trapped For 7 Hours On Tarmac
By 10.31.11
JetBlue is giving refunds to the passengers who were stranded on the tarmac in Hartford Connecticut for seven hours. [More]
Pay Target.com With PayPal And Return Stuff, Only Get Store Credit
By 9.28.11
Cora has a warning for the Consumerist community: while you can pay on Target.com using your PayPal account and then return it, it’s not necessarily a good idea. You’ll get your money back, but it won’t be automatically credited back to your PayPal account. Instead, you’ll receive the balance on a Target gift card. This can be either frustrating or convenient, depending on the amount of the order and how often you shop at Target. [More]
Costco Lets Man Return 5-Year-Old Suitcase With Broken Wheel
By 9.7.11
DrRonster was inspired by a recent Consumerist post about a guy who couldn’t take advantage of Costco’s famed warranty because he wasn’t a member. The “Ronster” went to take his own suitcase in for a refund. The suitcase has a broken wheel and is five years old, yet his venture was met with success, as he is a Costco member. [More]
Cox Giving Service Credits For Irene, Comcast Not Really
By 9.7.11
Cox Communications is giving out credits for users who lost cable service during Hurricane Irene. Here’s how to get it: [More]
Groupon Refunds Me Extra $20, Shrugs
By 8.23.11
Kairho probably shouldn’t complain. After a local business that had run a Groupon promotion went out of business, he had one of three $10 vouchers remaining. When he contacted Groupon about the closed business, he received the entire $30 back as a refund. Was it a mistake? No, Groupon explained: they don’t keep track of which vouchers you’ve actually used, so refunds are on the honor system. [More]
BoltBus Hell Trip: No AC, Windows Shut
By 7.22.11
Passengers on a BoltBus from New York City to Boston enjoyed an experience akin to traveling inside a self-cleaning oven with wheels yesterday as the air conditioning was off and the windows wouldn’t open. Outside the temps were in the 90’s. Inside, it was broiling. [More]
Atlanta Thrashers Season Ticket Buyers Still Waiting For Refunds
By 7.20.11
Back in May, we shared the news that the National Hockey League’s Atlanta Thrashers were still taking orders for season tickets right up until the announcement came that the team would be sold and move to Winnipeg. Disorganized and anti-consumer, sure, but as long as people who put down season ticket deposits for next season get their money back, everything would be okay. Yeah… about that. Fans who had already put down deposits for their season tickets are now getting a runaround, and the team owes each anywhere from a few hundred to a few thousand dollars. [More]
